King 1000/6000

Jeltz

Jeltz

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3,188
Location
Wiltshire
Well my King 1000/6000 arrived today along with a jeweller's loupe (x30 & x60) I haven't lapped the stone yet and might not get the chance until Wednesday.

I have have a razor ready and waiting to be honed and when I get round to it what's the ball park for the of number of laps on the 1000 to set the bevel, I mean is it 10's or 50 - 70ish or a few hundred, just so I know.
 
Depends, I think

Fairly new to this too but I've taken an edge from 'dragged on the edge of a glass' dull to shaving arm hair in maybe 30 odd strokes of the 1k, I've got two ebay specials one of which after about an hour some of it was starting to get sharp. I've found flipping over to the 6k side for a few strokes on occasion useful whilst learning, gives a good feel as to which parts of the blade have more suction on the hone or just another perspective before going back to the 1k again. I've also found it useful, if the bevel's in a bit of mess, to go with a few strokes using a pretty much shave ready straight, trying to get a feel for what I'm aiming for. The bevel on one of my ebay ones kept chipping until I'd pretty much worn the whole bevel away, it seems the steel in good condition was hiding.

I heard prof chaos over on B&B say even if his razors need just a touch up he takes it for a few strokes from 1k upwards. Not convinced this is necessary but again it's handy for getting to know your stones and blades. And just now I could use all the help I can get.
 
There is not really a set number so many variables how hard the steel is what condition the original bevel is. You should be able to check you progress every so often with the loupe and you should be able to shave arm hair easily once the bevel is set. be warned you will end up looking like a dog with mainge
 
Back to the start....but not tonight.

Ended up with an edge that pops hair off my arm easily but I think I should have spent more time on the bevel.
 
Nic - you really have to get the bevel set properly before proceeding to refine it on finer stones. If the bevels do not meet, all you will be doing by using finer hones is polishing the sides of the bevels - they will still not meet at the apex. You have to test along the length of the bevel with your nail and/or a loupe of around 20x - 30x magnification. A good light source with a dark background is good - that way you can turn the blade while looking at it and any 'flat' areas of bevel tip will show up as shiny.

Regards,
Neil
 
Thanks Neil,

The tip about the dark background is very helpful, just had another look and can just about see a bit of a shiny line albeit small, so near and yet so far!!

I thought that the bevel was set but clearly not quite. Might still crox strop, linen then leather just to see what change that makes to the look of the bevel before going back to the hones.

I never expected my 1st attempt to yield great results and its given me much more of a feel for things, it will be fun learning :mrgreen:
 
The King 6000 is a stone which I know well and rate highly, but it took me a while to get used to it. It's quite easy to take a slice out of it if all you know about is hard stones, which was my situation when I got mine. A decade and more later it's an essential part of my razor honing set up, but has been retired from woodworking duty on account of the fragility.

Jeltz: it's worth experimenting with how long you soak it, and with the consistency of slurry - this is a rather versatile stone. Instead of a nagura I use another small King 6000 to raise the slurry, but whichever method you use, it does have a radical effect on the cutting properties. I had a 1000 for a while but never fully realised its potential, but it immediately suggests itself as an ideal bevel setter, provided you're happy with very frequent lapping, because these dish in no time flat.
 
Well I've just done some stropping and its transformed the edge!

  • * 20 strokes on a balsa cr2o3 strop
    * 30 on a linen (denim)
    * 60 on leather
    [/list:u]

    The slight line I saw may possibly have been a burr I suppose, but with the exception of Its got a smiling curve of the toe its passing the HHT well. So the bevel must have been OK after all. :oops: As soon as I'd stropped I did the TPT and what a difference, it was scary the change.

    Andy, I don't really have much experience of hard stones, for my woodworking I have a Whetstone grinder and a few cheap diamond plates most of my sharpening had been with the aid of honing guides and jigs. The King stone seemed great and I was approaching it with a fairly light touch, hopefully I won't take a chunk out of the stone.
 
It really was very strange for me going from old fashioned novaculite stones (Washita, Turkey and Arkansas) to those new-fangled friable Japanese ones, and a real revelation to find that the edges were so very good and achievable in such a short time. A lot of cabinetmakers got converted by the arrival of the affordable synthetic Japanese stones at that time (mid 90s), in conjunction with the perforated DMT plates for the donkey work, and I'd have stuck with the waterstones if I hadn't found myself in a more frenetic, higher production situation where frequent lapping is inconvenient. They also suffer badly from dust contamination, and by golly, my job is very dusty nowadays. In the controlled environment of the kitchen though, the 6000 stone is a pleasure to use because you get so much feedback from it, to the extent that you can feel what the edge is doing without having to check.

At the risk of taking us off topic, what wetstone grinder do you have Jeltz?
 
Just a cheap Axminster "Yellow" one, I don't think they do that budget brand any more but I've got the lathe and bandsaw from that brand as well and for hobby use they all work pretty well.
 
Ah yes, I remember that range and I imagine that the value for money was pretty good. I asked because I'm wondering whether there is any economical alternative to Tormek for a decent solid grinder with an accurate tool rest (or whatever you want to call it). Had an "interesting" hour or so with a Scheppach recently, and let's just say that the search continues. /off topic section!
 
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